Chemical Factors in the Wear of Woodworking Cutters

Rapid blue-staining of a steel tool cutting radiate pine was revealed by interference microscopy to be associated with etching. A study was therefore made of the activity of some of the most common water soluble substances of wood. The two most likely classes of reagents appeared to be acids, notably acetic acid, and phenolic compounds capable of forming chelates with iron and other metals. Results indicate that chemically promoted wear can be minimized by the application of a negative potential to the cutter, but a more ready solution appears to be the use of cutters incorporating or coated with a chemically resistant material such as chromium.

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